The first notable celestial event of the year occurs this week when the Lyrids meteor shower reaches its peak Wednesday night and into the pre-dawn hours of Thursday.
And that’s not the only event of note in the heavens this month. The first of two “supermoons” this year will occur April 27. The second will follow on May 26.
The Lyrids are considered a medium-strength meteor shower, generating up to 20 per hour, according to a post on the NASA Science website. Fans of meteors look forward to them because there is little or no meteor activity from December until April.
“The Lyrids are known for their fast and bright meteors, though not as fast or as plentiful as the famous Perseids in August,” NASA Science explains. “Lyrids can surprise watchers with as many as 100 meteors seen per hour. Sightings of these heavier showers occurred in 1803 (Virginia), 1922 (Greece), 1945 (Japan), and 1982 (U.S.). Lyrids frequently leave glowing dust trains behind them as they streak through the earth’s atmosphere. These trains can be observable for several seconds.”
For hardcore fans (or insomniacs), the best viewing may occur after the moon sets at 4 a.m. on Thursday.
When the supermoon occurs next week, the moon will be only 222,135 miles from earth. It will be even closer for the May super moon at 222,048 miles. A super moon occurs when the moon’s perigee — the point in its monthly orbit when it is nearest to the earth — coincides with a full moon. The moon’s closest approach of the year will occur on Dec. 4 at 221,795 miles, but the moon will not be visible that night.
Another meteor shower, the Eta Aquarids, begins Monday and peaks May 4-5.
“The Eta Aquariids are a strong shower when viewed from the southern tropics,” according to a post by the American Meteor Society. “From the equator northward, they usually only produce medium rates of 10-30 per hour just before dawn. These are swift meteors that produce a high percentage of persistent trains, but few fireballs.”
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April 26, 2021 at 07:31PM
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The first meteor shower of 2021 reaches its peak Wednesday night - Greeley Tribune
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